Miss Annabella Scott

Miss Hortensia Primm

Lola

Miss Wilhelmina Rowbottom

Mr Ralph Montcalm

Mr. Crottin de Chavignol

Dr. Ephemera Wirefly

Professor Andrew McMinn

Lady Copperhead

Charlie Boggs

Vix Indigo

Francesca Hindenburg

Mr Mordecai Watson

Miss Emily Lockhart

Ihaka Tangaroa

Lord Edward Pearse

Sir JJ Drinkwater

the mysterious journal

The Quest...

If you are reading this, you may well be aware of the secrets within secrets. Or perhaps you have stumbled upon this journal by accident. In either case, you are part of the story now. Step a little closer.

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Set Sail for Pirate Lands with the new issue of The Primgraph!

Avast there, me hearties and join us on a fearsome voyage as we take to the seas in quest of the secret treasure that’s Issue 11 of The Primgraph—where we’ll hoist the main sail and set our course for regions where we’ll be encountering… pirates!

There. I have done the pirate thing, and now I can inform you most soberly and properly of the contents of this issue.

Miss Ceejay Writer set off for some of the wilder reaches in the Antiquity region, while Mr Aeneas Beaumont took an exciting voyage through the islands that make up the amazing area of Jabberwock—and both report back with their findings!

Rowan Derryth bravely set off to mingle with pirates and interview them about their… ah… lifestyles—she’s made it back to The Primgraph offices, but I’m not wholly convinced by her claims to have discovered an excellent new perfume—the bottle seems a little large, and the aroma seems more than a little reminiscent of rum.

And some of the songs that she, Miss Writer and Mr Beaumont (ably assisted by our photographers, Mr PJ Trenton and Miss Twisted Lemon) have taken to singing in the journalists’ hostelry, The Red Dragon (opposite The Primgraph offices), seem to me to be decidedly risqué… I was also a little alarmed to discover that several bottles of something marked “grog” have found their way into the sherry cupboard in The Primgraph staff common room.

Clearly, I should make a point of insisting that they spend some time with Frau Annechen Lowey who, as ever, gives us the lead as to the correct etiquette needed when encountering pirates.

But if you should be seduced instead by the account of life with the pirates, Miss Ceejay Writer offers advice on how to… ah… blend with the crowd (and a recipe to impress any pirate crew, by Chef Gregoe). And Miss Jedburgh Dagger has written on the systems that underlie the sea battles that seem to form a regrettable (for us landlubbers, at least) part of the pirate way of life. I must confess, though, that after reading Miss Dagger’s stirring piece, I did find myself posing before a looking glass with a red scarf tied rather becomingly over my blonde curls, and a shawl twisted about my waist wondering what it would be like…

And I must further admit, I did then scan rather eagerly the pages of our fashion articles this month. For Her Grace the Duchess of Caledon Carntaigh has written a fascinating piece of some of the lovely fashions that may be obtained across the grid to ensure that you make a splendid dash in your piratical outfit. And Miss Kembri Tomsen has provided a revealing insight into the garb favoured by the real pirates of the Caribbean!

And if you want more information about real life pirates, then I can refer you to the excellent and fascinating articles written by Miss Jedburgh Dagger (on the pirates that infested the Caribbean) and Miss Riven Homewood, who tells us all about the fabled pirates of the Barbary Coast.

I paid a visit myself, not to a pirate area, but to Steamfish, a special area developed on its own grid by Rezzable, the company behind the Heritage Key and also many remarkably beautiful places on the Second Life grid (many of which they have or will migrate to their own grid now). Steamfish shows how the technology can be used to develop games and immersive educational experiences. I enjoyed it hugely—as my report shows—and also brought back a great deal of information about scurvy which might come in handy if I should… erm…

No matter! There’s another Lost Chapter for you to enjoy by Mr Mako Kungfu whose diligent researches have uncovered What Really Happened upon the Cobb in Lyme Regis in Miss Austen’s Persuasion—and we believe you will be not a little surprised.

And if you are still thirsting for more pirates, this issue of our wonderful web comic, The Quest for the Golden Prim, reveals the dreadful fate of Minnie Rowbottom, who was kidnapped by dastardly pirates in the last issue. Meanwhile the expedition has taken to the skies and is sailing serenely onwards… or is it? There are tensions beneath the surface… and Nan learns of the Experiment that went Horribly Wrong for Dr Wirefly.

And our Library of the Month is the wonderful West of Ireland library which opened a splendid new extension on March 21st. Mr Onyx Plutonian was there to tell us all about it!

We have more of our classic serial, “The Mysteries of London”, and a further extract from London Labour and the London Poor—this month telling us of the London Watermen, Lightermen, and Steamboat-Men—as well as News from around the Steamlands and other vintage sims.

So, with no shortage of fascinating articles and beautiful illustrations supplied by our brilliantly talented team, we welcome you to this eleventh issue of The Primgraph.

And as for me, I am about to undertake a short and most decorous sea voyage. With a yo ho ho and a bottle of… now how does that song go again?

Best of all, you can join our Subscribe-o-Matic group, which will deliever the magazine to you automatically when it is published. The Subscribe-o-Matic kiosks are located in historical and steampunk sims across Second Life (for example, you’ll find ones at all the Caledon infohubs). And if you can’t find one in your favourite sim, why not ask the owner to install one?

For a short time, it will be available through XStreet (just search on the site for Prim Perfect). This will deliver you a copy in the form of a Thinc book that you can rez and read inworld. However, we will shortly be closing our XStreet Store and moving to another internet based porovider, as we are not prepared, for a magazine that is free at point of delivery, to pay the listing charge being asked of us by Linden Lab.

But if you prefer to read the magazine online but not inworld, there are choices too. Firstly, there’s the wonderful Calaméo system, which allows you to moves smoothly through the pages, giving you the feeling of reading a real magazine. You’ll find Issue 11 here – and please do leave a comment!

But, if you like to download your magazines to read as you commute to work, or in the bath, or wherever, you can also obtain a standard pdf for downloading and printing.

So, really, you have no excuse for not reading The Pimgraph. In fact, why aren’t you reading it now?